Through The Cracks
by MorningGloryBlue
Summary: He falls, he heals and then he rises again. Selina wonders if Bruce ever grows tired of it.
1. Cracked

10 drabbles by prompt; some short, some long, SelinaxBruce, before and after TDKR. And hopefully a prompt per day. Hopefully...

Notes: I have most of my prompts, but if anyone wants to suggest something, I am all ears. I would also like to give a HUGE thank you to all those who read, favorited and reviewed my other story _Aftermath_; this one's for you guys!

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_Cracked_

She's never seen anyone break before.

It reminds her of thick, heavy glass; too strong to shatter on impact, but still glass all the same. She watches the cracks slowly spider out from each impact, and Selina feels fear and dare she say it guilt trickle into her heart. She watches this man, Batman, this symbol be broken down into something that is very, very human. Selina remembers the whispers, and the legends of The Batman, told from everyone who has lived in Gotham for even a short period of time. He has become infamous and revered and everything in-between.

But it's really Bruce Wayne.

Admittedly it's not who she was expecting, as she watches more cracks split open like gaping wounds, but it makes sense. His retirement and Batman's, the cool toys [if she knew where he kept that motorcycle she would steal it. Immediately.], the slowed reactions. It makes sense.

But watching him crumble apart, all Selina can think of is how frail Bruce Wayne had looked when she had first met him, and the apathy in his eyes. She keeps her fists firmly at her sides, as she watches the pieces of Batman and Bruce Wayne crash onto the floor, and pretends her eyes are simply watering from the cold.


	2. Relationship

Reviews are lovely and they feed my ego. But mostly lovely.

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_Relationship_

Theirs is not a conventional one.

For one thing, they never label it, and seldom think about whatever_ it_ is. Bruce doesn't have much trouble with _it_, but he's also the man in this equation. It's not in a man's nature to really think about that. Selina would know; she's made it her business to.

Sometimes Bruce leaves for weeks on end, and will appear one day looking exhausted, but content back at her door step. It doesn't worry her; he always comes back. And she can't complain about his absences, because she gets why he leaves; she does the same. Every so often Selina takes off when things just become too suffocating [too normal she thinks] and does something to scratch that itch. It's not very romantic.

But, but, _but_; Bruce knows her favorite soup [tomato], flower [snapdragon], and perfume [Calvin Klein's Eternity] and he watches _Project Runway_with her [even though Selina _knows_ he would rather watch ESPN] and does little things that make her smile. And she can't pretend she doesn't know Bruce's favorite color on her [red], his favorite time of day [early morning] or why he gave up so much for Gotham. That part of their _it_ is frighteningly romantic.

Even their relationship contradicts itself, she thinks. And smiles

They are companions, she decides suddenly one evening over a well aged glass of port. Nothing else seems to quite fit what they have, and Selina finds she's okay with that.


	3. Danger

Btw, I know next to nothing about cars and empty stretches of road in Germany. But the Autobahn does actually exist.

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_Danger_

Selina loves speed. Which Bruce is just fine with, because so does he.

About six months after leaving Gotham behind, Bruce and Selina have enough money to buy [well Bruce does at least. After Wayne Enterprise was able to prove fraud after the stock market disaster, Alfred sent a couple pass-codes and now money is no longer much of an issue]a sports car. Then Bruce fiddles with it for a week or two, and after that the two take it to the Autobahn in Germany.

The Autobahn is long stretch of road with no street lights, no speed bumps and no rules. When Bruce crosses the 100 mph line Selina can feel her smile growing with each second. It's almost too fast, and she loves the adrenaline the slithers through her veins. They don't hold hands, but she does grip the armrests of her seat, and she knows Bruce is smiling too.


	4. Doubt

Notes: So... I'm back. For a bit anyways.

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_Doubt  
_

"Did you ever doubt decision?" Selina asks one afternoon. It's summer time in Spain, and she is quietly reading a book she'd forgotten she liked. She does this every so often, asks questions out of the blue.

From across the room Bruce answers, "You're being vague."

"And?" she asks, smirking.

Bruce puts down his tools and looks at her closely before continuing his work.

"Well, I couldn't exactly doubt myself while wearing a skin tight bat costume complete with a cape."

For a moment all that can be heard are the lapping of the ocean against the rock shore. Night is falling, and the sky is painted with the most lovely shades of purple, red and blue. When she speaks, she does so so quietly, he almost doesn't hear her.

"That's not what I meant."

Bruce exhales the breath her was holding when he looks at her and gives a sparse half smile.

"At times. But," he adds evenly, "like with fear, you can't let it stop you."

"I've let it stop me," she says looking down at the crimson polish in her toes.

He shrugs.

"So have I."

And when Selina doesn't respond, he adds "What matters is you came back. I'm thankful for it, so don't dwell on the it."

Selina wishes it were all that simple.

"Besides," he says gruffly before leaving the room for better lighting, "It wasn't you I doubted anyways."

The sun sets in a final burst of gold, and Selina is finally able to enjoy the sunset.


	5. Want

AN: I still exist! And unfortunately so does high school.

There may be an update tomorrow- I have a chapter written, but I have to edit first.

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_Want_

Gotham rots and festers once infected with anarchy. Selina can taste the fear of death, like a french prisoner waiting for the guillotine to drop.

Waiting for death has spiraled the people into a strange being. They are _(they are all)_ disconnected from the world somehow. And it shows, as Bane's anarchy spreads, and no one does a thing.

Waiting.

For someone.

For Batman maybe. _(for Bruce)_

From across a ghostly park, Selina watches an unfortunate stranger be mauled for his thick, woolen coat and the silk kerchief in his pocket. Watches as his blood splatters and seeps into the frozen ground and stains the white linen snow cherry red.

And she_ (says she)_ wants this.


	6. Moral

_Moral_

His moral code is bizarre.

Well his code itself is not, but his tenacity in following it is like nothing she has ever seen. Or is capable of.

When she tells him this, Bruce gives a bewildered look before fixing her with a tight stare. He does that often, like he's forgotten that she's a (mostly) retired cat burglar. But then sometimes she thinks he honestly believes she's capable of being as morally austere as he.

"You may not be as strict with your moral code, but that doesn't mean you are in the same league as Bane," he says with annoyance coloring his tone.

For a while the room grows quiet.

Dark shadows are slowly creeping through the apartment windows and the moon is hidden from the sky. The sun hadn't show itself all day, masked by the San Francisco fog. San Francisco itself seems to be perpetually chilly, even in the summer. It's easy to hide here, with it's abundance of tourists and collage students. Selina likes the feel of the city too; It's a hodge podge of narrow buildings with peeling paint and over grown window gardens in the poorer parts, while the more affluent parts of town are a mixture of both shabby and smooth faced apartment buildings. Selina also likes that she can walk anywhere from the apartment building they rent near Coit Tower, but her favorite part of the city is the ocean whose rhythmic sound and salty smell can be heard throughout the city.

"You believe far to much good in people," says Selina crisply, thinking of Gotham and Miranda Tate, but mostly herself. She's not on the side of cherubs and angles. Never had been. _(Never could be)_

"We've had this conversation before-"

"Yes, but it stands repeating."

Bruce looks hard at her, with a weathered face and his hazel eyes that never quite seem cold to her. Selina is again reminded of the ocean, and thinks she can just hear its rhythm through the open window.

"I never said you were an angel. Neither am I for that matter-"

"Gotham would beg to differ-"

He's glaring at her now, but she knows she's right. He saved how many peoples lives, and he seems to have no idea what his symbol means that are alive because of him.

"An angel you are not. But that doesn't mean you aren't capable of doing the right thing. And you did, and that's all that matters." To me, he doesn't say, but Selina hears it anyways.

The apartment the seems to fall deathly silent, and Bruce's words lay thick and heavy.

"What do I need to say to convince you that you are not one of the bad guys?" he asks finally, voice strangely gentle.

And she knows she's not. Not really. Selina worries about another thing entirely, so she changes the flow of conversation.

"Just... Just don't forget to remind me every so often," is what she says with a tight smile, and hard eyes.

His eyes soften as he looks at her, and it unnerves Selina that he would care to do so. Because what she really worries about, is that she won't be able to live up the the Olympic heights Bruce setts for his moral standards.

But maybe she thinks, as Bruce squeezes her hand before going to order some dinner, she can try.

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AN: I think Selina would still be wanting to find another sort of redemption, more then what she was able to achieve in the movie. Though that was a good start.


End file.
